Another story morning glory..

Tommaso with our AWESOME pumpkin.. I am quite proud!

...

another photo of the pumpkin

pumpkin in the window.. eery!!!!!!!!!

The inside of our "Palazzo Vecchio" where politics take place in Florence.. impressive

yes this is where i belong.. giving a speech in the palazzo vecchio in firenze.. magari!

This room made me think of my father who loves to collect maps/globes .. very impressive maps btw..

me at the festival delle creativita.. weird chair that somewhat resembled a inner tube covered in velcro..

Pomegranates from Tommasos uncles garden.. HUGE and quite wonderful ! ahh tommaso!

ok so I got it in my head to post more pictures of my daily life since frankly , its more appealing to the eye and makes me seem less frustrated than my earlier posts hehe.. I really am a happy person , its just when im happy im not usually at home writing a blog ( except for this morning! ) ..

Its late October.. work has been going well, the mullet-3 wheeled car was broken monday so I didnt take the kids i teach english to tennis, i suppose i am more worthy as a driver than an english speaker .. like i didnt already know that! yesterday I met a girl ( Gianna) who will be working with insiderabroad with me ( thank god! ) .. and we spent a great brunch drinking coffee/eating bagels and recounting our lives stories.. I can pretty much tell in 5 minutes whether or not I "click" with a person and she was such a sweet girl! More good times ahead I presume, and the fact that she was from Boston gave her some points.. everyone I have ever met from there is amazing.. why was I born in Texas? i kid i kid

so work has been going better, i have developed more of a selling routine and am MUCH less nervous getting out there and selling .. I believe in insiderabroad very much and I even though its slow going for ad sales in Florence, i do see potential.. most italians are like "what the hell are you selling or why should i spent money on this instead of buying google search words ".. but the more resistence I get the more passionate i get.. at least at  this moment. wait until next blog! LOL

I love october-nov-dece. something about the winter-fall that gets me excited! ironic since i was born in the summer and i HATE it,, to hot, sticky, no air conditioning.. while winter style is sooo much more fun. boots, scarves, sweaters, hats.. i never got to do that in texas!

I feel less-stressed than before but I am still very aware of the problems to come with italian bereaucracy..

tonight im going to dinner with friends since Allie ( an american friend who is going through similar visa problems) is going home to get her visa and work a bit before coming home ( to fLorence :) ) . .. is leaving.. pizza and laughter.. what more could you want.. ( 2,000,000 euros would be nice ) ..

so until then.. have a glass of wino on me!

Octobers already almost over?

fun times with my brothers girlfriend amanda!

Having dinner at our house with tommasos parents.;; yes it was amazing!

listening to music in Piazza Signoria next to Mr.. yeah i jumped off a mountain, saved a baby seal.. ect ect

my brother "not" looking like a tourist in Venice

venice splendour

so beautiful

the perfectness that is an "antipasto" platter

soo I have been lazy, i need to write more.. so one day I can look back and reason that I was once insane or
merely quite chipper! I just love that word.. chipper.. update on life.. we filed the visa so we wont have any problems until january but it IS Italy so who knows what CRAZY roadblocks Italy will create for me to live legally here.. I dont even care anymore.. its to be expected.. :P

work is going well , hustling but the apartments are starting to annoy me , whereas before it was simple as baking pie , now i get all these emails demanding that I lower the price because " of the recession" .. umm do I look like I own the apartment? and whats worse, unlike many would-be landlords, booking agents ( like me ) , I listen attentively , answer everyone almost immiediately and give advice about coming to Italy.. and what i get in return is people backing out the last minute after confirming and I am just sooo done with it. I know I need to be more strict as in.. 48 hours confirm or no-go like alot of agencies demand but I like to assure people and help them out the best I can but maybe since its the internet people lose sight of ALL manners.. business is business i suppose!

the best was after i spent a month or so showing this apartment to these two italian/english girls. literally they came to see the place like 3-4 times asking last minute and i did since I thought they were a good fit. all was smooth and they were ready to move in, but THEN the next day after they moved in . They sent this longgg email to the landlord ( my boss ) saying how DIRTY the apartment was  and they demanded that it be professionally cleaned. I was sooo shocked it was like getting socked in the stomach.. After all, i was there when they moved in and they were jumping in glee not disgust! The owner actually cleaned the apartment herself with her husband and anyone who knows an italian knows how super clean and precise they are.. the worst part is that they wrote directly to her and not to me.. which was a little strange since they only had contact with me thus far., i wrote them back a scathing email asking why they A. didnt call me so i could come over and look and B. why they wrote to her instead of coming to me first... the landlord actually wanted to kick them out when she found out why the apartment was so filthy, apperently the washing machines tubes werent gleaming nor the window frames.. WHAT????? I have decided I no longer want to work with people anymore.. or i may be arrested one day for assault..

Its been a crazy month so far, first insidersabroad finally merged with the English Yellow Pages which was nice even though we weren't in any of the "pasta party " pictures which was kinda disappointing.. why even take pictures of us if your not going to post them? then my brother and his girlfriend came to visit which was AWESOME, I got to (finally ) see Venice and just go out to dinner guilt free almost every  night. I was hoping they would have a great time and noone would be rude to them, albeit a few experiences in Rome ( well it IS rome ) , i think they had a great time and it gave me a semi-vacay as well! there is NOTHING i like more than friends/family coming to visit so i can show them why i chose Italy as my home!

whats the plan now? well .. besides going out too much ( lol.. i kid, i love staying home watching movies. ANTM, sex and the city ect ect ) , halloween is coming up.. i dont really have any plans but i do hope a last minute halloween party will happen.. you never know here! november i want to work my a** off to make some money for my trip home to Tejas in december.. i realllllllllllllly hope that i will be able to afford to go to los angeles.. its been FAR too long! but i hate bumming rides off people because i obviously have to fly in there and renting cars is not cheap so we shall see... please god send about 10,000 my way?

ok back to work.. until we meet/write again..

There may just be a visa god !

I wonder if others I have met in intercultural relationships can relate.. sometimes and by sometimes I mean often.. I look at an Italian couple or even an American couple and listen to them fight or make-up and whatever meaningless problems they may have and I want to punch them in the face. Because Imp psycho? NO rather when you immigration is Number 1 in your relationship ... everything else takes a backseat!.


I WISH I had normal problems like "ahh he peed on the toilet seat again" or " his obsession with Twilight is causing some distance between us".. no none of that virginal couple problems for me.. Ours are more like .. " oh my god the last day of the application is the 30th! " or him holding me while I tear up at the comune when they tell us we can;t get married due to me not having a stamp in my passport.. ahh the innocence of same- country couples!!!!!!!

well after the failed marriage attempt and the decision to wait for marriage for the "right reasons" and not just "legal reasons" didn't leave me very many options . Once again I was at square one with a boyfriend who wanted to help but didn't know how or want the stress .. sometimes you do feel very very alone. Just handing me a packet of permessos doesn't help me. Obviously any expat has pretty much looked over every visa known to MAN and concluded that 99.9 % would never work for them as they are .. not married/ millionaires/ George clooney/ shakira/ EU citizen and a country where political asylum is the #1 reason. ( would be interesting to try that one , but better in the Bush era)

Back at square one is like being told for one year you were finally going to get your drivers license and car, or better yet a house or better yet a witness protection program to escape some stalker..extreme disappointment ensues. You get much sympathy from said European friends and offers of passports/ blood transfusion.. ahh if it were only that easy,. I consider myself usually a rational person but wow, with this kind of stress I can turn any happy Lassie into a Kujoe in a matter of minutes..

So what are we going to do?? Well since the Italian government passed the security package basically tightening up immigration and so forth and since I can't afford an immigration lawyer, we are trying to get a visa via colf and badanti. Or in english domestic worker ( cleaner/ caretaker) . The Italian government has been nice enough to open up these jobs to the people who do what no one else wants to do.. literally clean up peoples shit and their house.. for less than the average wage. lol..

I have my hopes well, and this would be SUCH an opening to magic world of a permesso di soggiorno and eventually a carte di soggiorno.. I want to kiss that document more than Brad Pitt any day! bring it on!

I am starting to seriously believe that first generation immigrants really are more successful than their lazy offspring ,well I will make sure of that in my case! That said I have a ticket to go "home" to Texas from the 2nd to the 28th..a LONG TIME since my best friend is getting married on the 5th and I am maid of honor and then Christmas. I am nervous about this since my parents can make my vacation more stressful than the immigration process. I am starting to get questions like " can't you and t-man move back here " um NO ( there’s a reason I left Texas for California when I was 18!) and I wish you were around more.

I do feel truly sad about the fact that my family is so far away but I feel like my life is here. Going back home is just a mixed bag of emotions and to be honest, I just don't have allot in common with the folks back home. They don't really ask me about my travels or experiences and I don’t want to "brag" which is how I feel when I talk about Italy/ Europe. I feel like me and my wacky world of expat life is la mia pista ( my path ) in life.. whether or not its "mainstream".

Hopefully I can spend quality time with family/ no arguments or stress and guilt trips.. if not I am coming home early LOL who cares if it will cost me an extra 100 euros to change the ticket! I kid I kid .. I love my family and cant wait to down some Mexican food that undoubtedly make my stomach churn but will be good for the 10 minutes took eating it..

then I will drive around everywhere in a car, never walking except if I go to the gym and target while grasping a large coffee and a copy of OK! with that douche bag Jon Gosselin on the cover.. what is UP with that family? Its bad enough I have to see his face on every cover of magazines when I’m back but and he left his wife? ( ahh why I know these things.. my brain is getting dumber by the 2nd ) ..

I will say reasons why I want to live here in Florence instead of America

• the FOOOOOOD, I miss Mexican food/ BBQ so much but honestly after 2 days in America I miss fresh Mozzarella, basil, and stuffed tomatoes.. there is no comparison.

• the struggle. Yes that seems to be a constant topic of mine but even though it truly is a STRUGGLE, I feel so good when I achieve something, interview in Italian/ get a sale/ do basically anything I would have considered normal back home, getting internet connection in Italy is on the top of that list.. I need the constant struggle to feel ALIVE

• weather, ok Texas sucks for weather, if its not HOT its hailing ice at your car or making impossible for you to drive due to slick roads. Not to mention the gas guzzlers hurtling by at any given moment! California’s has great weather but no seasons! I LOVE that Italy has spring/summer/autumn and winter.. Makes for fun shopping!

• friends, I have AMAZING friends anywhere I have lived but here in Italy we share a common goal, to live here since we chose Florence for whatever reason. That already filters 99% of people before I meet them which is why I find it easy to make good friends here.. and a couch to crash while visiting Europe ;)

• Lifestyle., yes you average Joe American probably get paid DOUBLE of what I do.. this is without a doubt but I don’t think I will EVER be in debt, or obese here because both are pretty hard to due. Banks don’t give out loans easily , everyone saves, and obese people virtually DO NOT exist here even though everyone eats pasta almost every day! I love the fact that I can call a friend and arrange to meet her in the center. I feel like as you get older back "home" , everything takes so much more planning to get together due to everyone’s busy schedules! no one goes out on the weekdays. Here its the opposite. You always make time for an aperativo or beer with a friend even on Monday .. I need that constant social interaction to bitch about immigration and Italians ( jk jk ) .

• inspiration: after living here for almost 3 1/2 years, I find Italy/ Europe extremely inspiring such as when the first Europeans settlers hit Boston ( ok maybe that was a bit dramatic but you get the idea ) . I feel since I have been an abused nanny/ leather seller and whathaveyou here I can do ANYTHING, start a business/ fly a plane/ make a deal.. u name it or just google Georgette and you will see exactly how many jobs I do. LOL.

• food festivals : enough said!

well that’s all for now folks, next post: update on visa and whether or not I have "maimed" t-mans mother due to impromptu bedroom visits she makes when we aren't home. Creepy and very very intrusive.. but t-man doesn’t blink an eye,,, ahh Italians moms will be next post!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Working Hard and the woes of staying in Italy legally...

So I know its been many a month since I have wrote on my blog.. So much has happened and happening that I have had less time to sit here and spout /rambled away my nonsense. First off a short summary will suffice?


Since January ( actually last July) I have quit “crazy lady” or “devil” as I like to call you, basically anyone close to me knows about this notorious lady from countless stories over aperativo/din din or basically any chance I get to complain about her. I usually don’t let many people get to me but it was hard when you had pure evil staring back at you day after day.

Of course I DID choose the job and I loved the job, just not “devil” . Why is she so offensive to dear Georgette? Well take every rational problem-solving thought and deductive thinking and get a shredder and put them in there when it comes to dealing with her. I've seen hyenas with better patience and manners.

Basically my job consisted of finding clients for her vacation rentals ( she didn’t own them but rather managed them ) from abroad and finalize contracts/ do check-ins, follow-ups. Basically at the end of the day I was doing her job and then some and after many long and arduous months of me putting up with her bad vibes, I left her and the job in May ,collected my moolah and hightailed it outta there. Of course in the meantime I had contacted many private owners who had apartments in Florence and offered my services to them which they happily accepted to my delight so all was good in the world again.

Consequentially , I was hired by an American company called www.Insidersabroad.com which is a community portal/forum ( website) for people interested in traveling , studying, or living in Italy. There are reviews, forums, classifieds, and information about Italy’s various regions on the sites and they are partnered with the EYP ( English yellow pages) .it’s a great concept and I love the job, I am their Florence rep. and handle advertising in my region. In June , I went home to America for a long awaited visit to the fam, dad, mom, brothers, friends and then some. I hadn’t seen anyone in a verrrry long time and you better believe that I gorged on Mexican food, star bucks and various crap hehe..

I had a traumatizing travel back to Italy ( longgggggggggggggggg story which is not going to help anyone or my sanity by writing my experience here , maybe someday or over a cup of cafe) which made me realize how much I love the chaos that is Italy./. I nearly kissed the ground upon leaving the plane and realized for the moment this is where I am meant to be.. I have a good job, great boyfriend and a starting point of residency.. Forza!

Soooo to the fun legal stuff. As anyone who has ever eaten pasta in Italy and thought about staying there may have had to realize at some point is how hard it is to become a resident/ get a visa to stay longer in “Il Bel Paese”. Yes ive stayed, I studied here for a year, but now as a college graduate with no desire to spend money I don’t have to come back here and spend many frustrating weeks in America , I know this is something I have to take care of.
Italy does not take too kindly ( especially now) to people staying in their country without holding residency and Italian residency is like the pot at the end of the rainbow for those who want to spend their life here.

For me the study visa is out as I have had so much trouble with that and I want permanent residency at some point ( not just renewing every year or two) and access to Italian health care. Getting the correct info is like finding a needle in a haystack or watching TV without hearing about John & Kate plus 8, and at this point I would happily wrestle two midgets on Jerry Springer to gain this carte di identita!

Me and tommy are working on it and tomorrow will include a “fun” trip to the Questura to get yelled at/ or turned down by the Italian police. I am hoping one of them will have had a nice cup of café and a leery stare at a beautiful woman before I go so I can get at least a smile?

Immigration is a pain in the ass anywhere and I know how hard it is to get citizenship/residency in America but these are issues that concern me therefore why not blog about it :-P .
I will keep you posted on that process and my permesso di soggiono.. Why why why was I not born with 1,000,000 in assets to prove that I never have to work grrr.
I just came back from Lake como and Milan to work which was an amazing experience and good work wise.. Hopefully I can get insidersabroad.com more hits and action on the forum but it is new and I have to have “pazienza”

So for now I will lay back on my double ( two twins pushed together) bed and wipe the sweat off my brow and stop looking on those stupid expat sites for permesso advice and just do what I need to do . Its hot and sticky and I don’t have air conditioning but well that’s what Gelato is for..

Next week Amsterdam and the company of a very much missed friend .. I have to admit I have a pretty “bella vita” ..

A New Year... ehh its not that different!

Ok that sounds horribly pessimistic when here I am sprouting out optomism to anyone in a 5 feet ratio.. that aside, i do have hope for this new year such, as more fitness ( i actually shame in saying this knowing how very cliche this sounds. but nontheless the membership was bought and I actually just took a 4 hour nap instead of going to the gym today) more work opportunity.. hahahha im in italy lets see how that will work out and well .. we shall see. Life overall is good, Im happy doing what Im doing and im lucky to have a great man in my life who is always there to mame me laugh and pasta.

what i have seen so far in 2009

1. on my way to work gypsies smoking in a dumpster while dumpster diving, hazerdous much?

2. my inability to cut out "napping"

3. rocky relationships ( not mine but many around me ..yikes..

4. the crazy guy on the bus that I take who like to say hi to the ticket machine, a pole, not anyone ON the bus..

so whats been up..

work , sleep, its cold so more sleep, food. sleep , movies.

besides that I do partake in the occasional night out with nice people I have met here. We really should start a club for us here in Florence trying to survive the cold and radiators that dont work. That said we all went out the other night for the birthday of one of my friends here and like usual decided on aperativo first and then bar. I was kinda tired from work but I went along and brought my italian and all was peachy..until

so said friend had a friend that I will just refer to as douchebag. Why hold back? Hes Italian but unlike the many wonderful Italians I have met including my boyfriend and his friends who are nothing but nice and respectful, douchebag resembles a cocky american guy at times who probably got peed on at least one time in his life. Sure of himself, got the swagger, the floppy hair, hes not short which already gains him points in Italy.. not bad looking but not my type being that he is a douchebag. I tried to give him the benefit of doubt about his personality because maybe Im too harsh a critic. But once again, we go out , he meets up and starts to rail on Americans and blah blah , just basically vomit of the mouth. He doesnt speak english well but luckily? i understand him and his snarky comments to his friend and I was thinking at the time. I have been known to complain about Italy in front of friends ( not italian except my boyfriend) , and I actually feel guilty about it later because Italy is a wonderful country and I have a great time here, I can grumpy too but I would never spend an hour with friends shitting all over a country that I had friends from sitting at that table, the funny thing is .. he had NEVER even been there! NOT ONCE! or his snarky unattractive friend.

what ???? and i said in Italian, how could you have such definite opinions about somewhere you have never been? I dont claim to know hw the people of India work, eat, act, resemble because I have never been there and even though I have read up on it.. I have no place to come off that arrogant as douchebag came off as to at least me. HE of course says during the convo.. " oh why do u get so offended" but honestly... i wasnt offended until he said Why are you offended. When did having a different opinion than someone make you offended? Its called not agreeing ( which i think douchebag wasnt used to) and its not as if i was yelling so I was a bit confused at his statement.

and then he says to Tommaso " i have to give your girlfriend a kiss so know i dont want her to be offended"

um what?? Are we in 18th century france at the high court of the queen? Um I am perfectly able to have a conversation with someone and have my own opinions without getting so worked up to need to be kissed ( ugh) by him! does that make it all better ? hmm? oh please!

I don't care when someone says something negative about America, i do all the time! I dont live in America anymore! There are plenty of things to say! but he wasnt giving a thoughful insight regarding differences of culture.. especially when I have a degree in Political science and I enjoy having discussions.. he was just saying that americans are all hicks from the midwest and blah blah. i dont want to give douchebag an encour.

call me harsh but I dont think its funny or normal to bring up these sort of "my country is better than your country " during time with friends. I dont know.. maybe for them its ok, but what I learned from that is.. I am going to watch MY mouth and not get into arguments with people that arent worth me mentally translating from english to italian. Especially when they do that to get a rise out of you , as my boyfriend put it.

I told my boyfrind at dinner the next day.. I cant wait until I am mature enough to just "let it go" and not say anything but Im not yet.. and I dont want to be. I would rather just look douchebag in the eyes and speak in HIS language and destroy his meaningless dribble that he wants everything to believe, because with opinions like douchebag.. ( who by the way has a laugh like nails on a chalkboard) who obviously is a "guys guy" which means he thinks hes intellectually superior .. he is looking for reaffirmation of HIs thoughts instead of a normal conversation about different viewpoints.

Maybe its the pepperoncino I eat here or passion that is erupted in me in this country but part of me wanted to tell him " shut up, you talk to much " and punch him in the face, and I am not a violent person. but no i just went home with my boyfriend so I didnt have to see him overly gelled hair and his smirk anymore.. Ive decided thats the route to take from now on.. because needless to say I want to spend my free time with people I actually LIKE!

toast to 2009!!!!!!!! and my new resolution . see above..

moral of the story: shut the F*** up douchebag

Italian kids vs. American kids.. and the winner is..

by far AMERICAN KIDS. well as you know I have been working with several Italian families here in Florence and subsequently taking the abuse that their kids throw at me lol. Now I will say that there have been good moments, even happy ones but unfortunately I haven't seen those lately which now means blog time!

many people will say..American kids are so spoiled, picky eaters, don't listen , which is true in some cases , I have met some spawns of Lucifer in my times but after about 2 years on and off working with Italian kids, the few times I take the odd babysitting assignment for American tourists here I am so thankful that its hard to wipe the silly grin off my face. Why? They listen, they brush their teeth, they go to bed after I read them the 1 story requested and the parents actually CARE if the kids speak to me bad. Which my friends, is refreshing! Everything is done in a professional, here's my number in case of an emergency , there is food in the fridge, kids must go to bed by such and such time.. not the case in my Italian family experiences..

Most of the time when I work for Italian families its as if i am walking into chaos.. no instructions, no games plans, definitely no emergency numbers, nobody cares or asks if I am hungry and as far as payment goes.. I am lucky if they actually remember to pay me when they say they will. Some examples of this weeks festivities..

Me: " ok Fabiola ( 3 yr old Italian girl) , do you want to go in the garden and play?"

( keep in mind i am supposed to speak English with her which results in blank stares and my favorite phrase by her which is " i hate English, I'm Italian which means i am only supposed to speak italian!" um ok.. my job is officially irrelevant..

Her " ( in italian) I hate you , GO away , why do you always come over to my house and try and make me go into the garden , I am angry with you!"

( reference to garden comment :the mom asks that i take her into the garden for "fresh air" ..easier said than done!).

7pm rolls around which I eagerly gather my things and leave, awkwardly saying goodbye to the family who could care less that I exist..

Of course the Moms sister exclaims .. " oh children are like sponges, I have a German nanny and all my kids understand German" its so great..

oh really? great for who? your German nanny who probably suffers the same mistreatment on a daily basis while the kids learn a "wie gehts" and a "hallo" .

Seriously there needs to be some classes on how to discipline your kids here! I would never let my kids talk to people like that, much less those who are hired to work for them! anyhow who am i kidding, these are the kind of people who have 2 live in nannies.. i just want to say to them .. you speak English, how about spending time with your kids and just speaking English to them? they live in Italy, they will pick up Italian fast enough! so i think it is time to find another family and see if I can find the holy grail of Italian families.. to be continued..


at this point I am going to get back to more important issues such as , where to go to lunch.. any advice?

November 5th, 2008.. a great feeling..

what can i say..i woke up this morning in my boyfriends comfortable "double ( consisting of two single beds pushed together) bed" and lo and behold its not only SUNNY for the first time in a longgg while but Obama has been elected president. What more can you ask for in life? i know.. a croissant with nutella..

anyhow we will get back to that but since this is my first ( dare i say the word I always deem as slightly annoying...blog) I feel like I should provide a back story instead of demanding that people be interested in my life.. I am 24 years old, American, I grew up in San Antonio, Texas ( Go Spurs) and although I love Texas and my fantastic, loud typical Texas family at 18 I packed my bags, left home and I haven't looked back since. Of course I had some help with that, namely my ex boyfriend and best friend who all moved to LA or "la la land" as I like to call it.. I came, i worked, i finished University.. It was hard but in an age where I think we have a problem of what I call "sweet 16ers" , a little hard work never hurt anyone! Los Angeles was and is a great a place to live. I met many great long lasting friends and hey it gave me the opportunity to do things that i may not have been able to do in Texas, go to a pay pride parade with feisty older men in leather chaps, transvestite parties, crazy nights in Malibu and a paid trip to teach English in China and last but definitely not least, the opportunity to study and eventually live in .....ITALY.

I get random emails from time to time on Myspace. Most of them positive and some of them not ( mainly " so do your rich parents pay for your exploits ( exploits ?..what am i an eastern European hooker?) in Europe.. so to answer that persons question.. no no and more no.. of course my father has helped when I studied here but I live here ( in Florence) under the condition that I use my degree and actually "gasp" work and "gasp" support myself.. and work? oh yes work i do! I have two jobs as well as some freelancing lessons. Job #1 goes to a Vacation Rental Company located here in Florence where my job is to find clients from abroad , get them in vacation rentals, and customer service. A little bit of everything.. including having a crazy boss whose mood changes like those 2 dollars
mood rings everyone bought as a kid...She crazy , she makes ME crazy and if it wasn't for my sarcastic and funny colleague from the south of Italy i probably would have hightailed it long ago.. A good job in Italy is the equivalent of finding the holy grail during the religious crusades and I for one am not going to give that up so easily.. job#2 is slightly more masochistic in that I don't technically need it but since I am mainly paid on commission from job number 1 , I want to be sure and have this one as a steady paycheck. A couple of afternoons a week I get paid (well) to "teach" a rich familie's 3 and 5 yr old kids English by playing with them.. a very popular job with young Americans and English alike here in Florence. The funny thing about it as they know NO English .. so picture me speaking English to them and them staring blankly in my face as if i was speaking Swahili.. yep that's pretty much what I do.. the job is not without its rewards though and they are flexible so if I have to do something, no biggie i can call and not go that day because the family has not 1 but 3 nannies at their 24 hour disposal. I have perhaps seen the woman ( the mom) who hired me about 3 times since I have begun working there ( about a month ago) and the father almost never, in fact when i dyed my hair back to brown he introduced himself to me again because he thought i was a new English teacher.. lol.. hmm dad how about spending less time at ferregamo and more time at home with your kids? ahem... anyhow that's all i will write about that for now..

I live, work, eat, cry, laugh, sleep, ponder life here in this fantastic gem of a city called Florence. Is it the fantasy land where every English / American person wants to settle down for simple life after working 50 hour weeks? NO.. but it is for me! for the moment.. YES! there is nothing simple about Florence unless you are already rich and have people doing all of the "grunt work" for you.. if you think Florence is simple , just try to get fast Internet connected at your house..

I do love it here and yes I miss my friends and family back home very much, I have met amazing people here from all over Europe but it makes me sad because 99.9% of them leave after a certain period of time because like I mentioned before.. good jobs, low rent.. kinda hard to obtain here! I have met many great Italians as well ( hello, I'm dating one!) but it is comforting to be able to speak in English ( i speak Italian very well, i have to..i mean after 2 years it would be kinda lame if i didn't) and be able to bring up those cultural references ( like family guy) with someone who knows what i am talking about.. but time will tell..

so back to the first paragraph.. Obama won, the world( most of the world=) sighs in relief and here I am downing my second espresso and waiting anxiously to get paid and go get a nice big slice of Pizza for lunch! mama mia!

until then.. arrivederci!